It was the perfect excuse. It got her off the hook and didn’t leave the interestedly watching Michelle feeling rejected. “Hang on, Mark.” She muted the phone and turned to the shorter woman. “Much as I appreciate the offer, Michelle, and I do, I’m afraid I have to decline.”
A perfectly shaped red eyebrow curved up. “Problems?” She indicated the phone.
Dar met her eyes. “No, but I’m involved with someone, and it’s just not my style.”
Damn, that felt good to say.
She sighed inwardly as Michelle’s face stiffened into a hidden fury. “And, frankly, you’re not my type.” The door slammed behind her, and Dar leaned back, knowing she’d just caused herself a whole pile of trouble. Amazing how incredibly good that felt. “Okay, Mark, what do we have?” She put the Lexus in gear and pulled away from the towering brown building.
KERRY BARELY MADE it in the door as the phone rang for the fourth time, her skates slipping on the entryway tile and sending her lunging across
Tropical Storm
333
the room. “Jesus!” she yelped as her sweat-drenched body hit the side of the couch, and she grabbed the ringing instrument. “Yow!” She landed on her butt and lost the phone, then scrambled after it, capturing it finally. “Hello?”
she growled into it, trying to catch her breath.
A pause. “Hi.” A low, vibrant voice answered her, a touch quizzically.
Every ounce of tension suddenly drained out of Kerry, leaving her limp as a damp, warm dishrag on the floor. “Hey, sorry.” In the background, she could hear music faintly playing; other than that, it was very quiet where Dar was. She glanced at her watch.
Eleven. Hmm.
Her spirits rose from the dumpster.
Guess things didn’t work out
. She felt a smile pull at her lips.
What a
shame.
“You all right?” Dar inquired gently.
“I’m drenched, exhausted, pissed off, and now I have a sore butt,” Kerry replied. “Other than that, I’m great. How about you? How did dinner go?”
A soft chuckle. “Lousy. I think I may have blown a very important client relationship right to hell.” The executive sighed. “Why are you pissed off, not to mention drenched and exhausted?”
Kerry crossed her weighted down ankles and regarded the white popcorn ceiling. “Oh…well, I was skating,” she explained. “My mother called. I kind of broke the news to her that I wasn’t moving back there. She hung up on me.”
“Ah,” Dar murmured. “Sorry.”
“I’m not,” Kerry replied. “But it really pissed me off, and I…” She hesitated.
Was already tied in knots. No, she doesn’t need to know that
. “I decided to work off some energy skating.”
“Mmm, I see. You sound tired,” Dar commented. “I should, um, let you get some sleep.”
A momentary silence fell. Kerry rolled over and cradled the phone against her ear. “Where are you?”
A soft clucking noise then Dar let out a chuckle. “Outside in your parking lot,” she admitted.
“Dar!” Kerry felt a laugh bubble up, and her bad mood vanished. “Get in here. Jesus, don’t be goofy. You can help me up. I think I broke my butt.”
Through the half open door she heard the solid sound of the car door closing, then the soft, rhythmic footsteps she recognized as Dar’s. She turned and watched as the door pushed open, and the dark head poked inquisitively in.
“Hi.” She waggled a skate-covered foot at the taller woman.
Dar put her hands on her hips and gazed down at her, a faint, playful smile pulling at her lips. “You always go roller skating half naked?” she inquired, blinking appreciatively at the brief shorts and cutoff shirt. “You might coax me into trying it in that case.”
“Hah hah hah.” Kerry stuck her tongue out. “No, I don’t, but everything else is in the laundry. For some reason, I hadn’t gotten around to doing it this week.” A pause. “Yet.”
Dar tossed her jacket down and joined Kerry on the floor, stretching out on her side and propping her head up on one hand. She’d traded her suit for a pair of jeans and a cotton shirt, and she looked relaxed and faintly disheveled.
Just how Kerry liked her. She smiled. “So…is Michelle going to send Uncle Scrooge after you or something?”
334
Melissa Good
Dar shrugged. “She might, I’ll have to see. I’d better send a note down to the account team for them and warn them she’s probably going to be a bitch on wheels to them.” She fell silent and regarded the keys in her hand. “It’s too bad, but…”
Kerry rolled over and faced her. “But what? Dar, forgive me for saying this, but she’s a pig.” The blonde woman’s brows knit. “She was chasing after you like some…some…”
“Horny guy?” Dar inquired with a wry twist of her lips. “Maybe it’s the short woman syndrome I keep hearing about.”
“Hey!” Kerry gave her a look. “Short people don’t have syndromes!” she protested. “We’re just always pissed off because we can’t reach kitchen cabinets.”
Dar laughed easily. “Well, you’re taller than she is.”
Kerry considered. “Yeah, I am, come to think about it. I knew there was something I liked about her.”
“You’re a lot prettier than she is, too,” the taller woman continued, her voice gentling. “On the outside and certainly on the inside.”
Her companion blushed and glanced down. “Thanks,” she replied softly.
“I’m glad you think that.”
Dar studied her for a moment. “Your mom was kind of rough, huh?” She reached out and covered Kerry’s hand with her own. “Sorry you had to go through that, I know it’s tough.”
Kerry looked at the hand over hers, and let her fingers explore its surface a bit. “Dar, I wasn’t going to say this but…you know, one of the things that is so bad between me and my parents is that we never communicate, and I don’t want to start off that way with you.” She looked up. “I’m really glad you didn’t go with her tonight. It was really bothering me.”
The blue eyes blinked. “It was?” The words were soft. “I’m glad you told me that.” Dar lifted their joined hands and brushed her lips against them. “I was kind of…surprised when you told me to go ahead. It made me feel…” She stopped and shook her head. “Kind of disappointed,” she admitted.
“Oh.” Kerry thought about that. “Really?”
Dar nodded. “Really.”
“Hmm. I…” Kerry bit her lip. “I didn’t think I should get all…um, like
‘don’t you touch her!’ I mean, we could end up on Jerry Springer or something.”
A sly grin edged Dar’s lips. “Kerry, lemme tell you something, I would have paid good, hard cash to see you smack her hands. Next time someone forces me to go out, you’re coming with me.” Dar paused a beat and then asked, “So, what happened with your mother?” She met the startled green eyes. “You hate talking about your family, don’t you?”
Kerry sighed. “Yeah, I do.” She gave Dar a wry look. “I wish I could just forget I had them sometimes.”
The phone rang, and Kerry almost jumped out of her skin since it was resting on her stomach. “Jesus.” She picked it up and pressed the answer button. “Hello?”
“Hi, sis.” Her sister Angela’s voice sounded halfway between nervous and amused.
Tropical Storm
335
“Oh, hi, Angela.” She mouthed ‘my sister’ at Dar. “Let me guess, I’m the topic of conversation tonight.”
Dar rolled over and pillowed her head on Kerry’s belly, her eyes on the smaller woman’s face.
“Oh my god, Ker, what in the name of the Lord did you do to them?
Mom’s about having a litter of kittens in the middle of the kitchen. You’re not pregnant, are you?”
Dar lifted her head, and poked the surface she was resting on, making Kerry giggle softly. “Nope,” she whispered.
“No.” Kerry reached down and tickled Dar’s nose. “I’m just happy where I am and don’t want to come back to Michigan. Is that a crime?” She exhaled.
“Good grief, Angie, I’ve got this great job and all my friends. The stupid airplane was an accident, for crying out loud.”
A sigh could be heard over the phone. “Ker, it’s not funny, okay. Dad’s already talking about things. Be careful, okay? You know how he gets.”
Kerry felt a familiar jolt of fear grab her chest. “Yeah, I know,” she answered softly. “How are things with you? “
“All right,” her sister answered quietly. “Same old, same old. Richard’s out with his friends. I’m here. You know how it goes.” She paused. “I miss having you around. But honestly, Ker, I don’t blame you for staying away.”
“Well, I’ll see you next week, I guess,” Kerry replied. “If they don’t lock me out of the house, that is. Maybe they’ll settle down by then.”
“I doubt it, but I’ll be glad to see you anyway. If they give you a hard time, you can stay with us,” Angela advised her. “How are things with you?
You find anyone…um, I mean…well, you know.”
Kerry knew. “Yes.” She twined her fingers with Dar’s. “I did find someone, as a matter of fact.”
“Ah.” Angela sighed. “So this doesn’t really have anything to do with your job, does it?”
Kerry laughed softly. “In a way, it does,” she admitted. “I’ll tell you about it when I get there. It’s a long story.”
“Bring pictures,” her sister advised her. “I want to make sure my sister isn’t running around with some crazy Latin goat-sacrificer.”
Dar’s eyes grew round as she listened, and she lifted her head in outrage.
“Goat-sacrificer?” she mouthed.
“Shhh.” Kerry put a hand on her lips. “No on both counts, Angie,” she assured her. “Honest.”
An awkward pause. “Are you alone?” Angela asked hesitantly.
Kerry let a breath trickle out of her lungs. “No.”
“Oh.” It came out awkwardly. “Well, I should let you go then. You must be…busy.”
Blue eyes and green met and dropped. “I just got back from skating, actually.” Kerry cleared her throat. “We’re just sitting around talking. But listen, keep an ear on the folks for me, okay? I’d rather know if I’m going to walk into Hell next week.”
Angela sighed. “Okay, I can do that. You take care of yourself, Kerry, okay?”
“I will. You too, Angie. See you next week.” Her sister told her. “ ’Night.”
336
Melissa Good
She hung up, and let the phone rest on the floor. “My sister.”
Dar chewed on that. “She seems nice. You sure you two aren’t foundlings?”
Kerry snorted softly. “It’s crossed my mind, believe me.” She reached down and ran her fingers through Dar’s dark hair. “Want some chocolate milk? Some followed me home from the store today.”
“Sure.” The taller woman stood and extended a hand down to her.
“C’mon, I think
the Crocodile Lover
is on.” She grabbed Kerry’s arm and pulled her upright, smiling as the skates brought her smaller companion a good two inches higher than usual. “Mmm, nice positioning.” She leaned forward a little and kissed the waiting lips, feeling Kerry’s hands slip down and come to rest against her belt.
“Oh, great…” Kerry enjoyed herself, hooking her fingers in the loops and pulling herself closer. “I’m destined to be stuck on skates for the rest of my life.” Dar’s arms closed around her, and she gladly let her body relax against her companions.
“Goat-sacrificer? What kind of stories have you been telling your sister?”
Dar breathed in her ear. “You haven’t been scaring her with that stuff about
Santeria
and the
Chupacabra
, have you?”
Kerry let her head rest against Dar’s shoulder. “No, she’s been watching reruns of
Miami Vice
on cable again.” There was a pause while they both silently absorbed each other. “What are you doing for Thanksgiving?” she asked unexpectedly.
“You could invite me home with you,” Dar teased, watching a wistful look cross Kerry’s face. “I’m invited up to Gerald Easton’s house. He’s been a good friend, and sort of an uncle to me since I was a kid.”
Kerry patted her gently. “Good, I’m glad. I hated to think of you being all by yourself. That’s in Washington, right?”
Dar nodded. “Maryland, actually, just over the border. He’s promised me leaves other than green ones, and the chance of a little snow.”
“Mmm.” Kerry nibbled her jaw. “You’re taking your cell phone, right?”
Dar leaned back and studied her seriously. “If you get into trouble with your folks, you call me, Kerry. I’ll be there, okay?” She paused. “Cell phone, oh shit, that reminds me, I need to log in. Mark conveniently interrupted me as I was dropping Michelle off and told me we had a security breach.”
“Yikes!” Kerry sat down on the couch and started unstrapping her skates.
“Did he catch them?”
“Yeah. But they shot off a packet into the network, he was tracing it when he talked to me. He was going to route it and find out where it came from.”
“Help yourself.” Kerry motioned towards her desk. “I’ll get some milk and cookies.” She got up and leaned on Dar’s back, watching her start up sessions. “And turn on the crocodile dude.” She got a gentle, insistent kiss for that, and closed her eyes as Dar half turned to continue the pressure
. Bite me,
Michelle. I hope you spend the whole night with your pillow and a breadstick.
The night was definitely looking up.
“LOOK, I DON’T much care what he’s saying, that circuit isn’t going to be completed in ten days,” Dar pronounced for the sixth time. “Not even if I drive to Tampa personally and kick the telco crew in the butt, so forget it.”
“But, Dar,” the voice on the other end of the phone protested, “it’s been two months, they’re screaming!”
Dar exhaled. “It’s not our fault they got hit with a flood and it took out an entire CO, Brendan. We’re pushing telco as hard as we can, all right?” She glanced at her watch.
Only eleven thirty? Damn, it feels like I’ve been here for eight
hours already.
“They had to rebuild from scratch. Listen, tell them it’s a good thing, they’ll get brand new lines.”
Brendan sighed. “All right, I’ll see if I can snow them with that. But do me a favor, and push a little harder, huh?”
“I’ll see what I can do,” Dar promised, then disconnected and went back to her mail. “Damn, must be three hundred messages in here.” She went to the next one, a report from Mark about the mysterious packet the previous night.
“Someone scoping the place out, eh?” She examined the trace. “From an outside link, huh?” It was a request for information searching on specific strings, and as she scrolled through the dump, she stiffened.